Tile or other decorative device.



No. 733,668. PATENTED JULY 14,1903. H. C. MERGER. TILE OR OTHERDECORATIVE DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 21. 1902.

NO MODEL.

IHUIILMI No. teases.

NlTED STATES Patented July 14, 1903.

HENRY O. MERCER, OF DOYLESTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA.

TILE OR OTHER DECORATIVEDEVICEQ SPECIFICATION formingpart Of LettersPatent No. 7 33,668, dated July 14, 1903 Application filed November 21,1902. Serial No. 132,240. (No model.)

To to whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY O. MERCER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Doylestown, in the county of Bucks and State ofPennsylvania, have invented new and useful Improvements in Tiles orother Decorative Devices, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to tiles; and it consists in a novel process ofmaking mosaic tiles or decorative devices, and an article, the prodnotof the process.

The invention will be fully u nderstood from the following descriptionand claims when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, inwhich- Figure 1 is a plan view of a design such as may be usedin thepractice of my process and the production of my novel decorative deviceor tile; Fig. 2, a perspective view of a slab, of clay or other suitablematerial, designed to be used in the practice of the process andproduction of the article; Fig. 3, a plan view of the improved mosaicdecorative device or tile; Fig. 4, an enlarged detail section taken inthe plane indicated by the broken line 4 a of'Fig. 3, and Fig. 5 aperspective view of one of the elements of the design or pictureembraced in the decorative device or tile.

Similar letters of reference designate corresponding parts in all of theseveral views of the drawings.

In carrying out the preferred embodiment of my invention I take a slabA, of common clay in a wet plastic state, or a series of smaller slabsset close together, so as to present a smooth surface, and transfer adesign such as B, Fig. 1-upon the clay surface by any of the modescommon in pottery. When it is not desired to transfer a design, such asB, to the clay surface, I may, with a pointed or sharp instrument, scorethe design, free hand, on the surface. After the surface is providedwith the design in either of the ways mentioned or in any otherpreferred manner I out through the slab at all points traced by thedesign to produce sections 0, each of which represents an element of thedesign or, if the design be a picture, an object in the picture. Wheredesired, to facilitate burning or drying, &c., the sections can be cutinto still smaller pieces, regard- I less of the outlines of the design.I then permit the sections or pieces to dry, and I color them by any ofthe processes known to pottery. Forinstance, I color the houses embracedin the design or picture illustrated brown, the grass and trees green,the hills and sky blue, and the roads red, &c. The sections or piecesmay be colored throughout their thickness or only upon their surfaces,as desired, and in either case they may, when preferable, be glazed.Subsequent to the coloring of the sections or pieces I burn them in akiln, after which I replace them in proper relative positions to formthe picture shown in Fig. 3 and unite them through the medium of cementD, interposed between their edges; or, by preference, the pieces may beunited by laying them in a bed of cement, pitch, composition, or otherbinding substance E in the usual manner of all mosaics. The pieces mayalso be set in an easily-fluxible medium and burned together in a kilnwithout involving a departure from the scope of my invention. As ageneral rule, when the pieces are placed in a wall or pavement thebacking of cement or other binding substance will always be used; butwhen the pieces are used on a box, vase, or the like to be ornamented abinder of cement, pitch, lead, or other substance in the joints alonemay be depended on to hold the pieces together. It will be observed thatthe configurations of the clay sections or pieces follow and develop thedesign or picture, and from this it follows that a series of the jointsformed by the cement D, which may be in one or more colors, define theoutlines of the picture, which outlines may be broad or narrow, asdesired. Inasmuch as the said outlines may be broad or narrow, no careneed be taken to insure uni form shrinkage of the sections or pieces Cincident to the burning thereof.

It will be readily appreciated from the foregoing that my improvedmosaic decorative device or tile is advantageous, since the sections orpieces each constituting an element of a design or an object in apicture may be quickly and easily cut and as quickly and easilyassembled to form the design or picture, this latter because eachsection or piece has its proper place and can be arranged in no otherplace. It will also be appreciated that inasmuch as the sections orpieces may be produced in a free-hand manner great latitude is afiordedan artist in making designs and pictures and that the sections or piecesmay be readily set in their proper relative positions in plaster,mortar, pitch, cement, lead, or other binding material in a pavement,wall, or other place.

The material difference between my improved mosaic decoration and theordinary mosaic decoration will be apparent when it is remembered thatinthe latter minute pieces are employed, so as not to injure the outlines,and the forms-1'. e., buildings,trees,&c.are difierentiated by colors,while in my mosaic decoration the forms or objects in a picture aredifferentiated by the shape of the pieces or units.

The material difference between my improved mosaic decoration and thatin which four (more or less) different forms of piecesor units areformed is that in the latter the pieces or units are duplicated by thethousand and are interchangeable, while in my improved decoration eachpiece or unit is different in shape from any other, fits in one placeonly, and cannot be used in any other place.

While I prefer to employ the cement D between the edges of the sectionsor pieces 0 for the reasons stated, I do not desire to be understood asconfining myself to the same, as the said sections or pieces maybe heldtogetheri. 6., in their proper relative positions-by any suitable meanswithoutinvolving a departure from the scope of my invention.

In a modified embodiment of my invention I draw the design on ortransfer it or portions of it on a plurality of green or wet clay slabsdiiferentlycoloredforinstance,some brown, some green, and some blue. Ithen cut the sections or pieces 0 from the slabs and interchange thesections or pieces-that is, remove the brown tree and sky from a brownslab and replace the same with a green tree and blue sky from green andblue slabs, respectively, remove the blue houses and tree from a blueslab and replace same "with a brown house and a green tree from brownand green slabs, respectively, and remove the green houses and sky froma green slab and replace them with brown houses and a blue sky frombrown and blue slabs, respectively.

In another modified embodiment of the invention I contemplate makingaclay picture in one or more sections or pieces and setting in the sameone or more pieces of marble, stone, clay, or other material out to fitthe clay section or sections.

I have entered into a detailed description of my invention in order toimpart a full, clear, and exact understanding of the same. I desire itunderstood, however, that in practicesuch changes or modifications maybe made as fairly fall within the scope of my invention, as claimed.

Having described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure byLetters Patent, is

1. The process of making a mosaic decorative device or tile, whichconsists in forming a design on the surface of a slab, cutting v throughthe slab, on the lines of the design, and thereby producing a section ofmaterial which, by its shape, represents a part of a design or picture,arranging said section in proper relation to a complementary section,and connecting said sections.

2. The process of making a mosaic decora-- tive device or tile, whichconsists in forming a design on the surface of a slab, cutting throughthe slab, on the lines of the design, and thereby producing a section ofmaterial which, by its shape, represents a part of a design or picture,arranging said section in proper relation to a complementary section,and interposing a connecting medium between the edges of the sections,and thereby defining the outline of the section which, by its shape,represents a part of a design or picture.

3. The process of making a mosaic decorative device or tile whichconsists in forming a design on the surface of a slab or a plurality ofslabs, cutting through the slab or slabs at all points traced by thedesign and thereby producing sections of material each of which, by itsshape, represents a difierent part of a design or a difierent part of apicture and is non-interchangeable with any other section, andconnecting said sections in proper relation to each other.

4:. The process of making a mosaic decorative device or tile whichconsists in forming a design on the surface of a slab or a plurality ofslabs, cutting through the slab or slabs at all points traced by thedesign and thereby producing sections of material, each of which, by itsshape, represents a different part of a design or a different part of apicture and is non-interchangeable with any other section, andinterposing cement between the edges of the sections, and therebydefining the outlines of the picture ordesign.

5. The process of making a mosaic decorative device or tile, whichconsists in forming a design on the surface of a slab or aplurality ofslabs of wet plastic material, cutting through the slab or slabs at allpoints traced by the design and thereby producing sections of materialeach of which, by its shape, represents a different part of a design ora different part of a picture and is non-interchangeable with any othersection, coloring the slab or slabs of plastic material before or afterthe said cutting, burning the sections or pieces, and assembling thesections in proper relation and connecting the same.

6. The process of making a mosaic decorative device or tile, whichconsists in forming a design on the surface of a slab or aplurality ofslabs of wet plastic material, cutting through the slab or slabs at allpoints traced ICC) by the design and thereby producing sections ofmaterial each of which, by its shape, represents a difierent part of adesign or a different part of a picture, and is non-interchangeable withany other section, coloring the slab or slabs of plastic material beforeor after the said cutting, burning the sections or pieces, andassembling the sections in proper relation, and interposiug cementbetween the edges of the sections, and thereby defining the 10 outlinesof the picture or design.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of twosubscribing witnesses.

HENRY C. MERCER.

Witnesses:

WM. STUCKERT, J OHN P. STILWELL.

